Outdoor Painting - Pandan Shipyard, Singapore

Ever since I moved to Singapore in 1998, I have always lived in the Eastern part of the island and worked in offices located in the island's Central Business District and East for the past 10 years. My weekend plein air locations are usually around the city area and well-known landmarks like Chinatown, Little India, Singapore River etc. Hence, the Western part of Singapore is almost like a foreign country to me.

So, I was really glad to find out that my fellow artist friends have planned to paint a shipyard located at the very end of the West coast of Singapore.

Here I was last Sunday at Pandan Shipyard... it was like a breath of fresh air, definitely something different from the usual street scenes and shophouses that I've painted numerous times.Here's a picture of the location, we had to walk under a bridge to get to this spot.



It was a cloudy day and the surrouding under the bridge was quite dark and we had problems seeing our paintings clearly and it was definitely difficult to determine and judge the right colours and tonal values. A few artists decided it was too taxing on the eyes so they did some sketches but I presevered.

Here's the painting...I spent about 3 hours painting it on location and probably another half an hour doing final touch-up at home. Half sheet of Fabriano Artistico (14" x 21") painted using Rembradnt, Holbein, Schmincke and M. Graham professional watercolour paints.



I decided to change the colour of one of the boats from blue to red so as to have more varieties and make it more interesting but after I'm done, it seemed too dominant now. I could probably still tone it down a bit but might ruin the transparency I currently have.... I'll probably come back to it a few days later to see if it really needs a fix. What do you think?

... and here are some close-up shots of the painting.



Hope you like it. Comments and critiques are welcome as usual.

Fishing Boats - Penang

How did you spend your Christmas? I hope you all had a grand time! Well, I went back to my hometown and spent quality time with my family. I guess that's what Christmas is really all about... being with your loved ones and having a meal or two together :clap: :thumbsup: ..... although most festive holidays are now being exploited for commercialism and profit-making and lost their true meaning :(

Anyway, I was bored one afternoon when Javier is having his afternoon nap, so I took out my painting gears and painted this scene in Penang, Malaysia based on a photo I took last year.

I spent about 2 hours on this piece. Painted on Fabriano Artistico using Rembrandt, Schmincke, M.Graham and Holbein Artist Grade watercolour paints.

Hope you like it. Critiques and comments are welcome as usual.

Wishing you a HAPPY & PROSPEROUS new year 2008!

Hobart, Tasmania

Adeline and I visited Tasmania, Australia during our honeymoon back in 2004 and spent around 2 days in the city of Hobart. I especially love the scenic view around the harbour with many boats docking around the area. I still remembered vividly how we tucked into a nice big seafood platter in one of the floating restaurants there, and it was delicious!

I took many photos then with the intention to paint some of them and they have been with me for nearly three years now but I was either too busy or was being put off by the complicated scene.... until now

So, I decided to challenge myself and painted a full sheet painting of the harbour last week. I think it turned out pretty well. Here's the painting.

Paper: Fabriano Artistico 300gsm - stretched and stapled into stretching frame (20" x 28")

Paints: Winsor & Newton, Holbein, Rembradnt, Schmincke, all artist grade paints and some white gouache for highlights.



and here are some close-up shots...






Hope you like it. Comments and critiques are welcome as usual.

Old Gems

I was looking through a stack of my old paintings to pick out a few better ones to show a
potential customer last week when I spotted two quarter sheets that I have painted a couple of years ago. I thought they were just ordinary, nothing outstanding when I finished painting them, so I just kept them with my other paintings then. But when I saw them again last week after two long years, they seemed to offer a different aesthetic values than I remembered last time.

Now, I can appreciate the foggy effect on the background of Misty River and the lost and found edges on the boats and distant houses; I also liked the economy of strokes in Sarawak Longhouse and the bold spontaneous brushstrokes that suggested the trees and foliages.

Misty River (10" x 14")
SOLD

Sarawak Longhouse (10" x 14")
SOLD

I guess it is same with life sometimes. We do not seem to put much importance on what we already have; we hardly have time to ponder and cherish what we have in front of us. When we looked back, we tend to remember the good old days when we were still kids, or when we were still in school, or when we were still enjoying life as care-free college students or young adults. Perhaps things aren't the same anymore, but do cherish what we have at this very moment as things do not stand still.... time waits no one so be grateful and enjoy the good times and learn from the bad ones.

Sunset Cruise - Chao Phraya River, Bangkok

Here's something a little different from me, a sunset!
This is a scene along Chao Phraya River, which flows through the heart of Bangkok City, the capital of beautiful Thailand.

I was there in November 2005 and again in March last year for work related seminars. I spent whatever free time I had taking photos of the lovely place, but considering the tight schedule, I only have a handful of good ones. However, I did take a short cruise along the Chao Phraya River during sunset and the view was simply breathtaking. So, here it is, my impression of the stunning sunset I experienced that day.

Here's the painting...

Sunset Cruise - Chao Phraya River, Bangkok (11" x 15")
SOLD

and here's the close-up shots...

Hope you like it. Comments and Critiques are welcome as usual.

Fishing Boats at Telok Bahang, Penang

Happy Mooncake Festival to all!

During my visit to Penang a couple of weeks ago, our host took us to Telok Bahang, Penang, where we can do some sketching and plein-aire painting at a fishing village there.

However, before that, we made an unscheduled stop at a nearby art gallery run by a family of artists and then spent one whole hour looking at the many beautiful artworks on display. By the time we reached the fishing village, it's almost noon but we were still very eager to get something painted.

So, I sat down and picked this scene.


Not all artists did a full scale watercolour painting though, some sketched; some did line and wash, and two of us did full-scale painting. Therefore, most of them were done when I was still half-way through my painting.

By 2.30pm, we were all hungry, so I had to pack up although I still have some darks to add. It's not good to let seniors of 50-60 years olds wait for a 31 years old junior, is it? ;-)

So, I had to bring it home and do the rest of the painting back in Singapore. I'd say it's about 80% done on plein-aire and 20% done at home where I added darks and finished off the whole painting.

Well, here it is.... I decided to exclude the little red hut on the right as I felt it would fight for attention with the beautiful fishing boats, which should be the main focus of this painting.

Hope you like it. Comments and critiques are welcomed as usual.

Half Sheet of Fabriano Artistico (approx 14" x 21"), painted with W&N, Rembrandt and M.Graham artist paints.